ManPADS are shoulder fired infrared seeking guided missiles which are used against low flying aircraft. Some experts it the field of counter-terrorism have expressed opinions that ManPADS, if in the hands of terrorists, may pose a hazard to commercial airlines during take off or landing. The prior art has suggested installing devices on commercial airlines for detecting ManPADS launches. There is some concern, however, that the use of such devices on the airlines themselves may result in an unacceptably high false alarm rate (FAR).
The current requirements concerning notification of an attack may require an entire airfield to be shut down for hours during an investigation. Consequently excessive false alarms may impose high costs on the commercial air transport industry at one per airport per week level.
Thus, one of the important and salient problems to be solved is that with the report of a missile launch from an aircraft, the terrorist who has launched an attack can cause more havoc than just simply downing an aircraft. This is because once it is reported that a missile has been fired at an aircraft the entire airport and surrounding area is shut down. So even if the missile is diverted off course or misses its target, there are four to six hours worth of havoc created by the fact of just merely launching a rocket.
Also, if terrorists have made themselves known by firing a missile, and one doesn't know where the terrorist is, he may have more than one missile, which means that even if he misses he can try again. This is why the terrorists who fire a missile can in effect deny the use of airport for a considerable length of time.
A need, therefore, exists for an improved way of detecting, confirming and locating the position of a ManPADS launch location. This confirmation preserves airport operation by eliminating false alarms while at the same time assisting neutralization of the attackers.
More particularly, if a missile launch has been detected there needs to be a system for ascertaining that the detected missile launch is not a false alarm and if not a false alarm to deploy countermeasures and personnel to catch the terrorists and to prevent them from doing more harm once a missile has been fired. While countermeasures may be deployed on an aircraft to deflect an oncoming missile, this does nothing to capture the terrorists.
While ground assets can be instantly deployed if the location of a ManPADS launch has been ascertained, false alarm rates are prohibitive because if assets are deployed every time there is detection of a potential ManPAD launch there will be neither sufficient personnel nor sufficient resources to catch the terrorists or perpetrators.
It is therefore a necessity to be able to identify the fact of a launch and to ascertain whether it is a false alarm or not, and if not, to precisely locate and track the individuals who launched the attack. After a detected launch there must be continuous surveillance of the detected launch area to provide uninterrupted recorded video of sufficient resolution to enable facial recognition; and to provide precise location and tracking as the individual or individuals attempt to flee after an attack.
Also, if the individuals are apprehended there must be sufficient continuous evidence of their activities and their identities to permit effective prosecutions and convictions, along with the requisite chain of custody.
Moreover, with such a capability comes the deterrent effect of deploying such a system because it denies certainty that an attack will be successful in disrupting air travel. If that is the terrorists' goal, then the likelihood of success is much minimized and the terrorists may be dissuaded. Also, with such a system the terrorists may think twice about their ability to launch an attack and get away with it. Thus, there needs to be a system that removes the false alarm indications and if a detected attack is found valid, there needs to be a system for tracking the perpetrators and providing evidence of the crime in sufficient detail to apprehend and convict the perpetrators.